Brickify sits between a brick phone and a smartphone. Here's how the two compare.
Nothing to help with the walk or the bus.
Homework lives in apps.
One more thing to buy, charge and lose.
The smartphone lesson is only postponed.
| Feature | Brick phone | Brickify |
|---|---|---|
| What it costs | About £10–£15, plus a SIM | £4.99 once, on a phone you already own, plus a SIM |
| Calls and texts | Yes | Yes |
| Maps, music, school apps | No | Only the ones you allow |
| A second device to charge and lose | Yes | No |
| Changes with the time of day | No | Yes, profiles switch on your schedule |
| Choose which apps | No apps to choose | You pick them, profile by profile |
| Grows with your child | No, you replace it | Yes, open one app at a time as trust grows |
| Override | Not needed | PIN plus a second factor |
| What it looks like | An obvious basic phone | An ordinary phone |
| Internet use | No internet ever | Internet if you allow it |
By the start of secondary school, most children already have a smartphone: ownership jumps from 56% at age 10 to 83% at age 11 (Ofcom, 2026). So the question isn't whether, but what's switched on, and when.
Brickify isn't a rival to brick phones or to Smartphone Free Childhood. If you've signed the Pact and can wait until 14, wait. That's a good choice. Brickify is for families who've decided a phone is needed now, and for children who already have a smartphone that needs to be quieter. At 14, it helps too: instead of going from nothing to everything overnight, open one app at a time.
Brickify